Straightening press and method of straightening



Oct. 18,1927, B P SCHILTZ 1,646,260

STRAIGHTENING PRESS AND METHOD OF' STRAIGI'ITENING Filed April 8. 1922 3Sheelzs-SherJ l hlmuilllllj);

Oct. 18, 1927- B P scHlLTZ STRAIGHTENING PRESS AND METHOD OFSTRAIGHTENING Filed April 8. 1922 5 SheetsSheet 2 cto 0 18 1927 B. P.scHlL-rz STRIGHTENING PRESS AND-METHOD OF S'LRAIGH'IEIHNG 3Sheetfs-Sheet ,'5

Filed April 8. 1922 Patented Oct. 1S, 1927.

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BERNARD P. soltura, or CLEVELAND, onto, Assmann( To THE ze. A. GEIERCOM- PANY. or otnvnrisamgoaro, A jCoRPoRATIoN oF 01,110.

STRAGHTENING AND METHOD 0F STRAIGHTENING.

Application ined .April e,v

'f Vart which lack my improvements.

t is necessary in the use of yall straightening presses of such priorart with which I am acquainted, to support the shaft or part operatedupon, preferably from its terminal i centers, gauge its deiiection, takeit from its supports, place it inthe straightening press for preliminarytreatment, and repeat these successive steps several times. It isobvious that the constant handling of the shaft entailed, as abovedescribed, by the well known appliances of the art, is productive ofdelay, expense and inaccuracy. t

Accordingly, it has been my thought to provide a press wherein theseveral operations of gauging and straightening may be rapidlyaccomplished in the simplest and most accurate manner. .T he features ofmy improvements may best be explained by making reference to theaccompanying drawings Fig. l thereof showing in perspective astraightening press embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 of said drawings is a vertical sectional view of the same pressupon a slightly larger scale. Y

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary plan View of theI gauge wheel. V

Fig. 4 is a detail of one of the end supports for the shaft in frontelevation.

if ig. 5 is al side elevation thereof.

Fig' is a detail of the gauge supportin front elevation, showing saidgauge depressed, together with the adjustable standard.

. 7 is a plan view thereof.

i 8 is a fragmentary side view of a portion of the adjustable standardsupport.`

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary face view thereof. Fig. l0 is a fragmentarydetail, partly in section, showing the centering means. l

Throughout the several figures of the drawings l have employed the sameycharactei'` of reference to. indicate similar parts.

19,22*. serial Noj55a5e5.

Those familiar with the ordinary straightening press will atroncefobserve in the drawings certain unfamiliar features whichconstitute improvements requiring specific ef;- planation as tostructure and operation. However, lthe general features of a Vtypicalstraightening press will be noted, comprisi391 fed by @Proms Springs andplunger-s z,

Figs. 2 and 10. Y

The bracket @and shaft g, which has longitudinal, adjustment, within.said becker. both are resiliently supported by means lof the cable jspring j', while the-height of said bracket isregulated by means roftheadjusting screw zf, Y Two supportingy arms are adjustably mounted uponthe shaft g, between which theworkor part undergoing the straightenf ingoperation is supported above the bed and blocks c of the straighteningpress. One of these arms Ze is show-n in Figs. l and 5 with some detail;each of which is equipped with a centering pin 7c and supporting rollersZ3 in paired relation. The. opposing pins la or the paired sets 4ofrollers Ze" are provided for alternatively supporting theworkyaccurately in the straightening press; thelatter preferably being nsed.forv rapidMi-nsertion and removal of the work or. for shafts which aretoo long to ybe supported,Y betweenthe centering pins, or arey notprovided withl their own recessed centers. j y j y .A gage l,lcalibrated for measurementsto the thousandths ioffan inch, andorf"vvell knowntype, yis pivotally mount-ed onthe gage-stem Z.intermediately of bracket L, and-.s adapted t0 'be depressed withtsstem resting menge-gement with j the worlnjkjas: Shows in Fie. l;7 or,when released@ Screw ZG. the .Stem and' ses@ 1 W;1. 1-be s clear of thework' and thrgnstblock Shawn in .Fs-

Elilarsd defalsotthe gage mounting may be 'considered by refer ring` toFigs.' Gand 7, y ,j

`With the fereseas structural. features borne in mind, anexplanation ofthefadvang aune' which is terminally VsurTA in its intermediateposition, as shown'in 33S set.

spring the work sufficiently to clear the thrusttages and operation ofnmy improved straightening press may be readily understood. In Fig. l,for example. I have shown a four-cylinder crank shaft??? in positionupon the press and held between the centering pins in the well-knownmanner, for the purpose of accurately straightening this somewhatunwieldy member. Obviously, a shaft or other part of proper length mightbe held in working position by the same means; the limits as to lengthbeing defined by the adjustment permitted the arms upon the shaft g.

However, it is frequently :found necessary in shop practice tostraigl'iten much longer shafts or parts, and for this purposeparticularly I have equipped each arm l# with the paired `and accuratelytrued supporting rollers /e.` A shaft fn, of workable length materiallyexceeding the length of the grooved shaft g may be supported for thepurpose of straightening it by resting said shaft upon the rollers It,as shown in Fig. 2. This permits themost expeditious positioning andremoval of the work with respect to the straightening press.

Returning to a consideration of the showing of Fig. l, the operation ofstraightening the crank shaft after positioning` it between `thecentering `pins may now be briefly eX- plained; The bracket It isadjusted as to heightso that the ends of the crank shaft will clear theblocks 0 and permit the rotation of said shaft, whereupon the stem ofgage Z is depressed into engagement with the flexed intermediate portionof shaft m where it is held by set-screw Z. The shaft is then slowlyturned over by the operative who will note the deection of the gageneedle or pointer and place a chalk mark on the high spotor flexed areaof 'the shaft` The set screw is then released and the ZV immediatelyfrees the gage from block for the straightening operation.

Screwe is then rotated by the graduated gage-wheel d sufficiently toengage the thrust-block j with shaft m at its chalked position. `Theoperative may then use the lever o which is equipped with a clutch o andrelease 0 for flexing the shaft sufficiently to straighten it. Thisoperation is dependent to a considerable extent upon the judgment andexperience of the operative, guided, as he is, by the reading of gage`Z.

. 'Vhen he has/flexed the shaft m, which is brought into supportingengagement with the blocks cupon the initial depression of thevthrust-block*f, the operative will note the gaging `figure, as 1:25,'upon handwheel (Z which is turned to the forward position, andthereupon he will release the clutch and actuate the thrustblockupwardly by its screw in" order to free shaft m.

The resilient mounting of bracket L will serve slightly to elevate thework above the supporting blocks c; spring y" being adjustably tensionedfor this purpose in order to counterbalance the supported. weight bymeans of the nut j, Fig. 2. Gage Z is then adjusted with its stemengaging shaft m and the deflection, if any, is determined once more, asabove explained, and the straightening operation is repeated as often asrequired to bring the shaft into accurate alinement at the area orlocation acted upon by the press.

However, it is the common experience with shaft of any length to findthat they are flexed in various portions of their length and therebyunfitted for running true. Accordingly, another important feature of myimprovement, and one that is quite essential to the operation of astraight-.i ening press and associated apparatus of this type, is theprovision of means for permitting the shaft to be operated uponthroughout its length and withoutremoving it from the device.

It will be observed that shaft g is ,mounted within the bracket 7i. bymeans of rollers 7b', 71.,the former preferably engaging the groove insaid shaft for preventing its rota.- tion.y while rendering it freelymovable in a longitudinal direction. Thus the shaft m under treatmentmay be moved to the left or right `and carefully gaged and straightenedas before, until the entire crank shaft is alined within the desiredlimits of aclUU curacy. It `is apparent that `a straight shaft,countershaft or other member may be subjected to the straighteningoperation, just explained, and if such member has no accurately definedcenters, or is too long to be supported between the centering pins, suchshaft may be accurately positioned between the opposing rolls 7n, asindicated in Fig. 2. i i i Another feature present in the improvedapparatus of my invention is the resiliently` held centering rod e'which, being terminally positioned between the opposing spring pressedplungers i (Fig. 10), serves the purpose of .pern'iitting the work totilt slightly from the horizontal in being brought to place uponthesupporting-blocks of the press, whereby a. shaft having unequalterminale or of varying diameters at its ends may be readilystraightened without adjusting blocks of different heights upon the bedof the press;

In making the successive tlexures of the straightened shaft thecrcumferentially gaged hand-wheel is of extremeadvantage in that theposition of the thrust-block may be accurately determined at thebeginning and conclusion of each successive step of the straighteningoperation, so that the opertive may determine roughly 119W mufh theshaft is flexed veach time, merely by sighting the forward ligure orintern'iediate spacing with the axis of the screw. 'ihe pitch vof saidscrew heilig known, of course, it'v is easy to determine the depressionof the thrustblock at each'successive step.

The operating lever opreferably'is provvided with a reversible clutch 0actuated by the plunger 0., whereby the screw c may be powerfully turnedin either direction for straightening or releasing the workin hand uponthe bed of the prees, and while carried by the work-supporting unit intoits various positions required for perfecting the straighteningoperation. Accordingly, the work is moet expeditiously and accuratelyhandled without removal from the press and within limits defined by thethousandth of an inch.

Haring now described an embodiment of my invention and the novel methodof straightening shafts and. the like, l desire to claim and secure byLetters Patent, together with such modifications in method and means asmay be suggested by ordinary skill in the art, the following:

l. A work-holding appliance and gage for straightening presses and thelike, comprising an adjustable support for the member to be operateduponby the press, means for accurately gaging the work, and a depressibleresilient support adapted normally to permit the ready rotation of saidmember, substantially asset forth.

2. ln combination with a straighteningV press, an associatedwork-holding appliance, comprising an adjustable support adaptedaccurately to position the wont, a vresilient supporting means thereforpermitting the ready rotation of the work, a finely-calibrated gage, andan adjustable mounting therefor permit-ting said gage to be actuatedinto and out of operative relation vwith the work, substantially as setforth.

3. In a work-holding appliance for presses and the like, the combinationwith a bracket, of a mounting resili-ently positioning it with respectto the press, a work-holding support, a longitudinally adjustablemounting therefor upon the bracket, and gaging means associated withsaid bracket.,l whereby the work may be intermittently tested withoutremoving it from the working position upon the press, substantially asset forth.

4. In a work-holding appliance for presses and the like, a unitaryattachment for association with the press, comprising a resilientlymounted bracket, a shaft sliding longitudinally therein, spacedsupporting mounted upon the shaft, means upon vsaid arms for accuratelypositioning the work and permitting its rotation, vand a gagingappliance for testing the work from time to time, substantially as setforth.

5. In combination with a straightening arms press, an 4as'seciated,work-holding appliance porting arms adapted to receive and accuratelyposition the work while permitting -its rotation, depressible'resilientsupporting vmeans, ,andV means adapted to ltest the work intermittentlywithout removing it from the Lpr'ess or support, substantially as set,forth;

6. In ycombination with a straightening press provided with a gagedactuating handwlieel and opposed 'supporting-blocks, an

:associated work-holding ',f-iupport adapted vto fposition the worknormally adjacent to the supporting-blocks of `the press, a resilientconnection between the press and said support, and a gage adapted to beintermittently associated with the work without removing it from thepress, substantially as set forth.

7. ln a work-holding ap-pliance straightening presses and the like, thecombination with supporting mechanism for thetwork adapted to positionitabove the bed1 of the press, of ar resilient mounting y for saidmechanism, and centering means resiliently positioning' said mechanismwith respect to the horizontal plane of the press, substantially Vas setforth. f

8. The. herein described method of operating a straightening press,comprisingV the resilient support ofthe work slightly above the blocksofl said press in position for ready `rotation` the repeated gaging ofthev work w ile mounted in position for straightening by thepresswithout .removal of Vthe work,

and the repeated treatment of said work in depressed position upon theblocks in accordance with the indicati-ons of the gage, substantially asset forth.

9. In, a `stra-ightening means for shafts and the like, a carriage forrotatably supporting the shaft, a plunger, and a pair of anvils normallylocated on opposite sides of the shaft and out of contact therewith, theplunger operating to lower the carriage and force the shaft against theanvils.

l0. In a straightening inea-ns for shafts andthe like, a carriage forrotatively supporting the shaft, a plunger, and a pair of anvilsnormally located on opposite sides of the shaft and out of contacttherewith, theplunger operating to lower the carriage and force theshaft against the anvils, and a centricity of the shaft.

y 11. ln a straightening means for shafts and the like, a carriage for`rot-atively supniicrometric indicator for indicating the ec-A port-iiigthe shaft, an adjustable plunger, and t :i pair of anvils normallylocated on opposite sides ofthe shaft and out of contact therewith, theplunger operating to lower VVthel carriage and force the shaft aga-instthe ani'ils.

'12.111 a straightening means for shafts for and the like, a carriagefor rotatiyely supporting the shaft, an adjustable plunger, and a pairof anvls vnormally located on opposite sides of the shaft and out ofcontact therewith, the plunger operating to lower i the carriage andforce the shaft against the anvils, and a shock absorbing meansconnected to the carriage.

13. In a straightening means for shafts and the like, a carriage forrotatively sup-V nected to the carriage and actuated on the movement oithe plunger towards and. on

the movement of the plunger in the directionV away from the shaft.

14;"In combination with a straightening press, an associatedWork-holding appliance,

comprising a supporting member, means for permitting its longitudinaladjustment, two spaced supporting arms carried by said member, andpaired opposing rollers freely rotatable upon each arm and adaptedaccurately'to position and rotatably hold the Work, substantially as setforth.

In testimony whereof l do now signature. i

BERNARD P. SCHILTZ.

